Better than Chick-Fil-A Carrot Raisin Salad – Healthy!

Have you ever ordered a salad from a fast food establishment thinking it was one of the healthiest options in the menu? I have.

While we don’t eat out often, much less if the place has a drive-through, every month or two my husband and the kids enjoy Chick-Fil-A. Don’t get me started about the germs in the “play” area–that’s another story.

I once tried the carrot raisin salad thinking it would be a healthy option with my grilled chicken sandwich. It was so good, I wondered what the heck was in the salad?

So, the inquisitive foodie in me began to google look alike recipes and found the nutritional information on their site. I was disappointed by what I found.

Ingredients I try to avoid at all costs (like high fructose corn syrup, “spice” and calcium dysodium EDTA) were in my delicious salad! I knew it was too good to be true!

The recipes that I found to “make it homemade” weren’t any better. They were also made with mayonnaise, sugar and even corn syrup (a couple).

What would I substitute mayonnaise for? Plain Greek yogurt of course! High in protein, low in fat (0% if you use non-fat) and rich in calcium… you just can’t go wrong with it! I use it in my MOMables menus all the time and in my kid’s school lunches.

Next, I had to make sure that I could still achieve that sweet taste and crazy good “juice” found in the little black cup. My challenge is to use real ingredients while making sure it remained true to the original.

I know that once you try my version, you will be thankful I ate carrot raisin salad for a week! Paired with some nitrate-free organic ham and round whole-wheat crackers… it’s also the perfect school lunch!

I’m very impressed with your motives desire ro feed our kids as we should. I’ve been reading your site and following for a while now but have resisted purchasing for only a few reasons. One is the amount of sugar in the meals. Although we don’t follow complete Paleo, we do try to keep the sugars low, even the natural ones. Can you tell me your beliefs in the carbohydrate consumption and how that filters into your meals?
Thanks, Autumn

Thank you Autumn! I have an “everything in moderation” mentality when it comes to food. I grind my own wheat and I am not afraid of carbohydrates. That said, we don’t eat starches with every meal. In this particular recipe, the honey is optional and the other sugars found are naturally occurring in the food.

I made this last night because it looked so easy and I am all about easy!! I was a bit skeptical as I have never tried this at Chik Fil A but thought, what the heck, my daughter loves all the ingredients so how bad could it be?

It was SUPER easy and FAST to make!!! I made this in between making dinner last night(and I do not like to cook). I just sampled it for lunch today and was pleasantly surprised. It is quite tastey! I am looking forward to giving my 18 mo old some carrot raisin salad at dinner tonight. 🙂

Wow! Great going! this is one salad that can be left in the fridge for like 2-3 days and it tastes just as good. I mean, carrots are crunchy so it’s not like they get all soggied up. And the “juices” make it delish. My 13mnth old loves it too. Glad you liked it!

So excited to find this! My 6-year-old could eat his weight in this salad when CFA was still selling it! I, however, assumed it was healthy (as I’m sure many others did, too) and am sick-to-my-stomach when I think of how much of this stuff I ate, trying to avoid the fries…not sure that was a bargain at all! Anyway, the kid of mine who loved it has since shown a sensitivity to lemons (didn’t know there was such a thing before a couple of weeks ago!) Can you make a suggestion for what to sub for that? Is it a natural preservative or does it make a significant difference in the flavor? Thanks for all you do!!